Birds in Flight
by Kayani-Yun
Summary: Trouble is brewing in the dark crime riddled streets of Gotham city. The only thing standing in it's way, an all-female team of superhero crime-fighters. But can they overcome their personal issues and dark histories to uncover the twisted plot forming in Gotham's evil underground. FF13/DC AU (Birds of Prey/Batman). Rated M: for violence and strong language. FLight.
1. Chapter 1

...

**Birds in Flight**

**Chapter One: Another Routine Mission**

* * *

Bathed in soft orange glow, Vanille stared in disbelief at the vast array of large computer monitors that littered the office desk in her clock tower home. She couldn't quite believe what she was seeing, but in the same breath, it wasn't the first time a mission had gone awry.

She pushed her glasses further up the bridge of her nose, wincing when her communicator buzzed loudly in her ear. "Oracle, this is Black Canary, do you read me?"

Lightning's voice sounded frantic, causing Vanille to panic slightly. She readjusted herself in the seat of her wheelchair before hitting the bottom to reply. "This is Oracle, I'm reading you Canary, what's the situation?"

It wasn't as if she didn't already know, with her vast array of surveillance cameras and microphone equipment, she could practically hear and see everything that was going on, but she needed to hear it confirmed.

The mission had been simple: infiltrate the drug cartel, arrest the criminals and get home in time for tea and biscuits, but as usual a certain renegade member of their band of vigilante super humans had led the mission astray.

"Oracle, I've lost contact with the Huntress," Lightning's voice crackled though to her headset. "Damn stupid woman, is going to get herself killed."

Pinching the bridge of her nose, Vanille shook her head in frustration. She should have known that Fang's hot-headed heroism would once again get them into trouble. "Canary, from your current location you should see a large satellite communication tower on the next roof over, I can see it on the monitors."

Vanille watched her apprentice on the monitor as she examined the area, her black cape flapping in the wind. Lightning took a running jump, leaping from one rooftop to another and landing on her feet with ease, right in front of the communication tower.

"Roger that Oracle, what now?" Lightning replied.

"Use your Canary cry to destroy the tower and that should help to unblock the signal."

The second Vanille had finished speaking, she quickly muted the sound on her headset. The last time she had forgotten to do so, Lightning's supersonic Canary cry had nearly blown out her ear drums. She watched the monitor, wincing when the communication tower stumbled down as it was hit with the super powerful blast of supersonic sound waves. Soon as the last of the tower hit the roof, she turned on her headset.

"Bloody hell Lightning, you could have warned me, my ears nearly dropped off!"

Vanille breathed a sigh of relief, followed by a soft chuckle when Fang's voice boomed down her headset.

"It was Oracle's idea and use my damn codename!" Lightning replied.

Those two were always arguing, Vanille chuckled, though Lightning was right, Fang really needed to remember to use their codenames.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever, _Black_ _Canary_,_" _Fang replied sarcastically, she sounded a little out of breath, which worried Vanille.

"Huntress, we lost communication, are you alright?"

"No, I'm not bloody alright." Fang replied, sounding more than a little annoyed. "I would have been fine if little miss sunshine and rainbows here hadn't fucked off at the first sign of trouble."

"You ran head first into a pack of well-armed, armour clad fanatics!"

Once again adjusting herself on the seat of her wheelchair, Vanille sighed. There were times when she could find the humour in their arguing, but today wasn't one of those days. She had been subjected to this almost every time they went out on a mission, the pair simply did not get along. She leaned back in her chair, listening to the pair bicker back and forth through her headset. She startled slightly upon feeling a small hand come to rest on her shoulder. She spun her head round, it was only Serah.

"Are those two arguing again?" Serah said, her voice soft. She placed a cup of tea on the desk, smiling when she was given a nod of thanks from her mentor.

Serah had a kind heart, one that Vanille had always believed to be far too soft for their particular line of work. Crime fighting required a rather hardened outlook on life and a willingness to be exposed to the grimy under current of Gotham's criminal underworld. Unfortunately, since Serah was a Meta human, there was no way around it, a normal life simply wasn't an option.

It had been over a year since Vanille had taken up the responsibility of mentor and leading member of her very own crime-fighting team and so far things had been going well. Many criminals had been apprehended and the streets of Gotham were a much safer place, thanks to their efforts. Now if only she could get a handle on the conflicting personalities of her two crime-fighting apprentices.

"Considering I'm the one who's half feline, you sure act like more of a pussy than I do."

"Want to say that to my face? _Fang_-"

"Codenames, remember…"

"Stop it, both of you!" Vanille had officially reached the end of her tether. They had a mission to complete, there wasn't time for childish squabbles. "Huntress, what did you see in there?"

"I checked out the area, there's a fair few guys inside the warehouse but I cleared the outside."

Vanille nodded, even though she knew Fang couldn't see her. "Good, you think you and Canary can take the guys inside? Or do you need backup?"

Before anyone could reply, Vanille winced at the loud squeal behind her. Serah jumped up, grabbing her shoulders. "Yes, send me, I can help!"

Serah had yet to take part in a single mission, her superpowers simply hadn't evolved enough to be useful in a combat situation. They were becoming more powerful with practice, to the point where she could now move objects with her will alone, but her empathic abilities made her unstable and far from combat ready.

"No! We can handle this one," Lightning had obviously heard her sister's request but being her usual overprotective self, would never have allowed it.

"Sorry Serah, but your sister is right, we got this," Fang agreed. She liked Serah but knew this situation was far more than the trainee superhero could handle.

"Use my codename!" Serah shouted, running from the room and into the training room of the clock tower.

Vanille called after her but she was gone, leaving her to focus completely on the mission at hand.

* * *

The air was cold tonight and Lightning felt herself shudder as the harsh breeze blew under her cape. Sometimes she really regretted her choice of attire. The black fishnet stockings and leather body armour didn't help much against the elements, but she was there to fight and as far as she was concerned, easy manoeuvrability was key.

Her headset crackled in her ear with the sound of Vanille relaying information from the clock tower. They didn't really need it, the mission was pretty simple at this point, but Lightning had always been the cautious kind and information was power. Lightning listened as Fang's voice sounded through her earpiece.

"Yeah, yeah, we get it Van-ugm, Oracle. Don't worry we got this."

Overconfidence got you killed, Lightning had lost count of the amount of times she had said those words to Fang. The woman was overzealous and completely reckless, it got on Lightning's last nerve. Part of being a good crime fighter was patience, skill and most of all knowledge, running in blind was beyond stupid.

"Canary, do you read me?" Lightning shook her head, realising she had completely spaced out.

"Reading you huntress, what's wrong?"

"Well, now that Oracle has finished boring me to death, I want to kick some serious ass."

There was that overconfidence again, but Lightning shook it off, at least this time they were armed with intel. She surveyed the area, trying to pinpoint Fang's location. The warehouse was below, surrounded by smaller buildings, one of which Lightning was perched upon. She couldn't see Fang, but knew she had to be close by, she was always easy to spot. Fang's choice of clothing was hardly conspicuous and considering that stealth was, in Lightning's mind a very important aspect of crime-fighting, she always thought that purple and yellow leather was a poor choice of clothing. Not only that but Fang had topped off the ensemble with a purple mask, sticking up at the top much like wolf ears. That least Lightning had the good sense to choose black, and she would die before anyone would get her to wear a mask.

"Huntress, what is your location?"

"Right here, surprised you didn't hear me coming." Fang jumped down from the higher rooftop, landing at Lightning's feet. "Then again I'm pretty sneaky."

Lightning rolled her eyes, turning her back to Fang to examine the warehouse below. The lights were on, but it was clear all the doors had been locked. The cars and vans outside indicated that as they suspected and Fang had witnessed, there were still people inside.

"Before you ask, I saw seven of um. Heavy weapons and armour, but nothing we can't handle."

Lightning nodded at Fang, moving to stand beside her on the rooftop. She was sure Fang was right, they could easily handle whatever lay inside. With her Canary cry and Fang's feline agility and expert martial arts skills, there wasn't a whole lot they couldn't handle. The only problem now was figuring out how to get inside the warehouse.

"Should be easy, we can use one of the air vents on the roof."

Raising her eyebrow, Lightning turned to Fang. "Can you read minds now too?" She asked, Fang had an annoying habit of doing that.

"I've known you for over a year Lightning, I know how you think."

Fang received only a rumble of annoyance in reply, although she was sure Lightning was only minutes away from a lecture on using there codenames on missions, she decided to pre-empt it before her companion had a chance to speak.

"I saw three air vents, easy access, shouldn't be too hard to get in from there," as Fang spoke she started climbing down the ladder on the side of the roof. She didn't need to use it and neither did Lightning, but it was hard to talk when in freefall. "All blocked, so we may have to use that fabulous cry of yours to break in."

Fang dropped from the ladder, hitting the floor. She watched as Lightning did the same, dropping beside her. They walked slowly across the courtyard, taking cover behind the car and vans that obviously belonged to the criminals inside.

"See that pipe running up the side, we can-"

When the door to the warehouse swung open, Fang immediately stopped talking and dragged Lightning further behind the car and into cover. The man that walked out of the doorway was one Fang had seen earlier. He was carrying two large bags and heading towards the black van on the opposite side of the courtyard. As Fang watched, she noticed he had left the door wide open.

"Looks like lady luck is on our side, let's go, quick," she whispered, grabbing Lightning by the cape and dragging her towards the door.

Under normal circumstances Lightning would have punched Fang's lights out for dragging her in such a way, but she decided that would have to wait until later, it would draw to much attention to them.

Once inside Fang locked the door behind them, putting the latch closed and chuckling to herself. "Guess he's not getting back in, poor baby," Fang grinned, an almost sadistic twinkle in her eye.

This was one of the things Lightning had to confess to liking about Fang. When the huntress was caught up in the thrill of a mission, she had an almost merciless quality, she wasn't one to let a bad person go unpunished. During combat she was fearless and frighteningly feral. Lightning had always found it to be quite thrilling to watch. There was one thing she couldn't fault Fang on, it was her abilities in battle.

Door now locked, they moved through the warehouse, careful not to make too much noise. When they reached the top of the second set of stairs, Fang stopped, taking cover up against a wall. She could hear voices coming from the room above.

"I don't know boss, chick was crazy."

Fang listened, lending down on one knee and gesturing for Lightning to follow suit.

"And what was with the black leather? Kinda kinky don't ya think."

"What are you gay or something? Did you see the tits on that chick!? Man what I wouldn't give"

Lightning rolled her eyes at Fang. It was typical criminal banter and nothing they hadn't heard numerous times before, but Lightning had to wonder who they were talking about.

"Think they're talking about you? The black leather and all." Fang whispered, grinning when Lightning once again rolled her eyes.

"There is no way they could have seen me, unlike you, I don't run around like a walking target."

"Yeah true, can't be talking about you, your tits aren't that big."

This was a typical example of Lightning's ironclad self-restraint, she wanted more than anything to kick Fang's grinning face in at that moment, but of course that would give away their cover. She promised herself, later.

The talking inside the room had stopped and Fang nodded at Lightning, signalling that this was the perfect time to strike. Both women got to their feet, locking eyes before running up the last set of stairs and into the room.

Mere seconds after entering, Fang winced, both hands flying over her ears when Lightning released a mighty Canary cry. She watched with a smirk as the small band of men flew across the room, hitting the back of the warehouse wall. Their poker table soon followed, flying into the air and knocking all four criminals out cold.

Once the Canary cry had faded, Fang turned to Lightning. "Well, that was anticlimactic. You could have saved some for me."

Lightning smirked slightly, this wasn't the first time her Canary cry had robbed Fang of her fun, she had to admit, it was a guilty pleasure.

"Yeah right," Lightning replied, placing her hand on her earpiece, "Oracle, mission complete. Criminals apprehended, ready for pickup."

There was no reply. Lightning glanced over at Fang, her brow creased with worry. Vanille would never cut communications.

Lightning watched as suddenly Fang dropped to her knees, hands clutching her ears, her expression pained. She searched the room frantically, but couldn't see nor hear anything unusual. She turned back to Fang, who was now lying on the floor, practically screaming in agony. Lightning knelt down beside her, grabbing Fang's shoulders with a firm grip.

"Huntress what's happening!?" She shouted, but Fang didn't reply, only continued to scream. "Fang! Answer me dammit."

The screaming stopped and Lightning sighed when she realised Fang had passed out. The warehouse fell into silence, save only for the sounds of dripping water. Lightning got to her feet, tapping her earpiece, there was still no word from Vanille and with Fang unconscious she knew it was up to her to get them to safety. She placed her arm under Fang's legs and the other round her shoulders, preparing to lift her up.

"Well, if it isn't my favourite lady crime fighter."

Releasing her grip on Fang, Lightning stood. She recognised the voice as it echoed through the empty warehouse. She had definitely heard this woman before.

"Deepest apologies my little bird, I had to get your girlfriend out of the picture, this doesn't concern her."

Lightning narrowed her eyes, my little bird, there was only one person that had ever called her that. "Show yourself Shiva!"

The laugh that followed made Lightning's skin crawl. She staggered backwards when the room was filled with blinding white light, followed by a layer smoke. Adjusting her eyes, she coughed into her hand, watching as the smoke began to clear.

"_Lady_ Shiva, if you don't mind."

Just as Lightning had suspected, Lady Shiva stood before her, hands on her hips, smirking. The warehouse was filled with the sound of high heel boots and the creek of her black leather catsuit as she stalked towards her.

"We meet again my pretty little bird."

Lightning glared. She had a chequered past with this woman, many years of fighting on the same side only to become bitter enemies. Lightning had no desire to take another trip down memory lane.

"What have you done to her?" Lightning asked, pointing at Fang who was still unconscious on the floor behind her.

Lady Shiva laughed, her face creased with humour, causing her black mask to rise slightly to her forehead. She twirled her staff with one hand, banging it down on the ground like a walking stick.

"Don't recognise your own Canary cry? My dear bird?"

"Canary cry? I didn't hear anything, what are you talking about?" Lightning asked, deeply confused. She hadn't heard nor felt anything when Fang was screaming in agony, let alone her own Canary cry.

"Oh sweetness," Lady Shiva smirked, circling Lightning as she spoke. Lightning followed her movements, never turning her back to the super villain. "I may have harnessed a smidgen of Canary magic."

Completely unable to fathom what her nemesis was talking about, Lightning shook her head in frustration. Harnessing canary magic? It made no sense. As far as Lightning was aware, she was the only meta human with that particular ability. Of course if it had been her Canary cry that had incapacitated Fang, it made sense that it had no effect on her.

"Explain yourself, Shiva!"

The response once again came in the form of a malevolent laugh. Blonde hair fell over leather-clad shoulders as Shiva turned, walking to the other side of the warehouse. She spun her lance above her head, picking up more and more speed and causing the weapon to admit flashes of blue lightning that filled the room.

"Now is not the time for stories, _Lightning Farron,_" Shiva laughed, her lance now a rod of flashing blue light. "Actions speak louder than words."

Lightning readied herself, moving into a combat stance. She knew this was going to be a tough battle, especially since it was one-on-one. She glanced back at Fang who showed no signs of regaining consciousness, so Lightning had no choice but to fight.

"You know you can't beat me, _Jihl Nabaat_."

There were no more words exchanged and Lightning could only watch as the blue bolts of lightning cascaded outward, filling the warehouse before fading away.

Eyes locked, but instead of two sets, there were now four. Lightning had been afraid Shiva would pull out the big guns, and now her fear had been confirmed. Floating behind her in all their terrifying glory were the Shiva sisters.

Lightning had faced these mechanical monstrosities many times and she wasn't looking forward to a rematch but she had little choice in the matter when the Shiva sisters rushed at her, moving in for the kill.

She weaved out of the way of the first attack, jumping backwards with a well-timed back flip. She landed on her feet only to be blown backwards by Shiva's powerful blizzard spell. The blizzard fading, she took a deep breath, preparing her Canary cry to deal a mighty blow upon her foes.

The cry got stuck in her throat, instead causing her to cough violently when the room was once again filled with heavy smoke. Unable to see, Lightning was forced to rely on feel alone, dodging and weaving out of the way of unseen attacks. One of the attacks made contact, sending Lightning flying backwards into the wall. She grunted in pain as she fell to the floor. When she looked up, Nabaat was standing over her, grinning ear to ear. Lightning tried again to use her cry, but it was no good, the smoke that filled the air burnt her lungs and she was left with only an intense pain in her chest.

"Like the smoke, little Bird?" Shiva laughed. "It's my new special recipe, just for you."

Lightning coughed, she wanted to speak but her throat closed. The intense burning filled her senses, making her eyes water. Shiva and her sisters hovered over her, grinning as they watched her struggle for breath. Her eyes felt heavy, and her mind, though filled with panic, was too disorientated to think straight.

"You see little bird, I never arrive unprepared," Shiva's voice whispered in her ear. "But don't worry, now isn't your day to die. Oh no, first I'm going to make sure you suffer."

Despite her best efforts, those were the last words Lightning heard before she lost the battle with consciousness. As the world faded away, she truly believed that would be the last she would see of it.


	2. Chapter 2

...

**Birds in Flight**

**Chapter Two: Canary Down**

* * *

Darkness and fear greeted a very disorientated Lightning Farron when she slowly opened her eyes. Judging by the pressure across her face, she guessed she must have been blindfolded. She took a deep breath, calming herself and assessing the situation. She knew, like all good crime fighters did, that panic would do her no good.

Her wrists were clearly binded. She tried to move her hands, wincing at the burning feeling of rope rubbing against her skin. She was sitting upright, so she guessed that she was tied to a chair. Her ankles were also restrained, clearly having been tied to the legs of the chair. And wherever she was, it was cold. She shivered as an icy breeze hit her cheek. It was only when she turned her face away from the breeze that she noticed the pressure around her neck. There was something there, but without being able to reach for it or see it, she had no idea what it was.

"Well, satisfied now?"

That voice, it was definitely Shiva's. Lightning would recognise that arrogant tone anywhere. She sat limp on the chair, hoping they would assume that she was still unconscious.

"I suppose you did well."

Lightning couldn't place the second voice but somehow she did recognise it. The tone of the woman's voice was very familiar.

The room was filled with the sound of Shiva's high heeled boots and Lightning could sense her presence as she walked behind her. The faint sound of water dropping on metal caught her attention, and as the two women continued to speak, Lightning noticed that there was a slight echo in the room.

"You suppose?" Shiva laughed, her voice filled with arrogance, "I made her my bitch! And as for the Huntress; oh, if only Selina could have seen me turn her precious little daughter into cat meat."

_Fang_. Lightning felt her body tensed with anger. Her hands balled up into fists, gripping the rope around her waist. What had they done to Fang?

"You killed her?"

"Well, no," Shiva replied, sounding a little ashamed, "I was going to but then those damn copters showed up and we had to beat it."

Lightning heard footsteps circling her, followed by a heavy sigh before mysterious woman responded.

"Backup from the Oracle, I would imagine. No matter. The Huntress was never our true target. Her life is insignificant."

As much as it angered Lightning to hear her friend's life referred to in such a way, all those feeling were nothing in comparison to the relief that flooded her body. Vanille had arrived in time to save Fang. At least she knew that she was safe. That was one less thing to worry about.

"Why are we here anyways? It's bloody freezing."

Lightning couldn't agree more. Although she hated to agree with Shiva on anything, it felt like the temperature was dropping by the second.

"Doctor Estheim advised it. Apparently, the collar works better in lower temperatures."

Doctor Estheim, Lightning had heard that name before. Although she hadn't dealt with the man first hand, Dr Bartholomew Estheim's reputation proceeded him. He was infamous amongst the criminals that haunted the grimy underworld of Gotham City. Going by the alias 'the Scarecrow', Dr Estheim's numerous attempts to defeat Gotham City's own Dark Knight had earned him quite the reputation amongst criminals and superheroes alike.

"Well, I suppose the good doctor knows best," Shiva replied. Lightning could hear her teeth chattering from across the room. "Still, mind if we get on with this? Before I freeze to death."

"Fine, but don't take the blindfold off, not yet at least." The woman voice sounded further away now and Lightning could hear her footsteps as she moved around the room, "And don't remove the collar, that cry packs a punch."

So that's what was round her neck, some kind of collar and by the sound of it, it was clearly designed to suppress her superpowers. Lightning had never heard of such a thing, it could only be the invention of the notorious scientist. Lightning knew Shiva didn't have the intelligence to design something like that.

"Time to wake up, little bird," Lightning felt a firm grip on the shoulder before she received a harsh slap across the face. "Wake up, bird brain!"

When she lifted her head, the room echoed with Shiva's malevolent chuckle. "Oh goody, you're up. Now the real fun can begin."

* * *

Fang paced the length of the clock tower, she hated waiting but with Vanille searching through thousands of news feeds and security camera footage, there wasn't much she could do to help.

It had only been a few hours since she'd woken up to find herself safely back in the superhero headquarters and after being brought up to speed on everything that had happened, she had immediately attempted to leave.

"I have to find her Van, she could be in trouble." Fang had pleaded.

It had taken Vanille over an hour to talk Fang out of running off to find her, but eventually common sense prevailed. Without any information or leads to go off of, the chances of finding Lightning were practically non-existent. So Fang was forced to wait and hope that Vanille could find something to at least help them start the search.

Fang glanced over at Vanille. The computer expert's eyes never left the vast array of monitors and control panels that were littered around her workstation. She had been at it non-stop since their return from the warehouse. Although Fang was grateful that Vanille had the foresight to send back up the second communication had been cut, she wished they'd arrived in time. She slumped down in a large leather chair in the lounge area of the clock tower. Leaning back, she stared up at the tall ceiling. If only she had stayed conscious maybe none of this would have happened. She could have helped Lightning, saved her from whatever or whoever had taken her.

"Mmm, interesting," Fang immediately jumped out of her chair, running to stand behind Vanille, "This is very interesting indeed."

Vanille pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose, humming at the computer monitor. She looked around when she sensed Fang standing behind her, shaking her head slightly at her nervous shifting.

"What is it?" Fang asked, impatiently gesturing with her hands, "What have you found?"

Manoeuvring her wheelchair to face her, Vanille placed her hand gently on Fang's forearm in an attempt to calm her. Fang was worried which was understandable. Over the course of the year and a half since Vanille had formed this small band of superhero crime fighters, they had accumulated their fair share of enemies. Any one of them would have taken Lightning hostage and it was obvious to Vanille that the entirety of the criminal database was currently running through Fang's mind.

"That drug cartel, the guys you busted," Vanille rolled her chair over to the largest computer monitor on the centre of the desk, "we suspected those guys might not be working alone."

Fang nodded. They had discussed this earlier, before the mission. There was no way a bunch of idiotic criminals like the ones inside the warehouse could have acted without some sort of backing. The cartel was far too well executed and professional to be the work of a bunch of low ranking street thugs.

"Well, meet the boss," Vanille hit a bottle on the computer keyboard and the largest monitor immediately flickered on, displaying a picture of a woman with blonde hair and glasses. "Jihl Nabaat, Aka Lady Shiva."

Narrowing her eyes, Fang leaned closer to the monitor. She didn't recognise the woman personally but she knew her by name and reputation. "Isn't she?-"

"Lightning's old crime-fighting partner, yes." Vanille tilted her glasses to the bridge of her nose, examining the picture on the large computer screen. "Before Lightning joined us, she used to run with Nabaat. She hasn't told me much about it, only that they parted ways shortly before I found and recruited her."

When Fang had joined the group shortly after Lightning, she had known a little of the Black Canary's reputation. Lightning held a great deal of respect within the superhero community, however very little was known about her background and Lightning wasn't exactly the talkative type. On many occasions Fang had attempted to get to know her better but Lightning was always vague when it came to any details about her past. Any and all information Fang had acquired had come from Serah and even that wasn't a great deal, since the two sisters had only been in contact since the group had been formed. Serah hadn't grown up with her sister, so she only knew what she'd been told.

"So, I think it's safe to assume that Nabaat has Lightning then," Fang added.

"A safe assumption," Vanille replied, "But the question is why?"

"Revenge?" Both Fang and Vanille startled at the voice coming from behind them. They looked around, finding Serah standing in the doorway of the gym. "Maybe she's angry at Lightning for something."

Serah walked across the tower, the tails of her white cape flapping behind her. The fact that she was dressed in her crime-fighting ensemble worried Vanille. It was clear Serah planned to join Fang when they mounted a rescue and this time Vanille wasn't sure she had the heart to stop her. It was her sister after all.

"Another safe assumption but this is speculation on my own part," Vanille wheeled herself across the room, slowly stopping front of Serah, "Do you know anything about Nabaat? Did Lightning tell you anything?"

Serah sighed, shaking her head, "I wasn't around when she was teamed up with her. I don't know much about my sister's life from before, well, you know that."

Vanille did know, since it had been her actions that had finally reunited the sisters. After growing up apart, the siblings hadn't even been aware of each other's existence before Vanille had recruited them and put the pieces together. Lightning, she had stumbled upon unintentionally, but Serah, on the other hand, she had been observing for months. Telekinetic powers were a rare gift among meta humans and Vanille was determined to make sure Serah's powers didn't fall into the wrong hands.

"She hasn't told you anything about her past?" Vanille asked. She received only a frown in response.

Ever the researcher, Vanille did know a little of Lightning's past but the information pool ran dry after the age of sixteen. Lightning had abandoned her foster family, disappearing from any records Vanille had access to. Up until the last year and a half, her life before that remained a mystery.

"Look, who gives a flying bat fuck what this bitch is after," Fang piped in at this point. She didn't need to know the reasons. She wasn't in the mood for history lesson, no matter how curious she was about her partner's past. Fang was ready to kick some ass and Nabaat was firmly on her shit list. "Let's just find out where she is for fuck's sake."

Vanille sighed heavily, wheeling herself back over to the computer monitors. Finding out that Lady Shiva was somehow responsible for Lightning's disappearance was one thing, pinpointing a location would be a more challenging endeavour.

"I should start tagging you all. Remind me to get on that soon as this is all over," Vanille joked, hands moving quickly across the computer keyboard. She needed more information, luckily information gathering happened to be her speciality.

Pulling up the video surveillance footage from the warehouse, Vanille winced, grumbling to herself as she attempted to clean up the image. She felt Fang and Serah's presence behind her, watching the footage.

"See that?" Fang asked, pointing to the computer monitor and an image of herself falling to the floor. "No idea what the hell that was but it sounded a lot like Lightning's Canary Cry."

Vanille shook her head, pointing at the image of Lightning on the screen. "Well, I know that you have a habit of pissing her off but she would never use her super powers on you," she zoomed in on the image of Lightning, "and her mouth is closed, she isn't using the cry."

"Well, that's what it sounded like," Fang placed her hands on the desk, leaning forward, "only about ten times worse."

The image flickered to Lightning leaning over Fang and preparing to lift her up. Fang watched the scene with interest. Although there was no sound, she could practically hear the shrieks of that horrible painful noise still resonating in her mind. They watched the entire scene play out before them. Lightning attempting to fight off Nabaat and the dreaded Shiva sisters before passing out on the floor.

The rest of the footage showed Nabaat pulling out some kind of communications device. There was a momentary pause before a figure in long black robes entered the room. Their face was masked with a large black hood.

Fang squinted her eyes at the screen, watching as the figure scooped Lightning up off the floor and carried her away. "Any idea who that is?" She asked, her eyes never leaving the computer screen.

Vanille shook her head, pausing on the image of the hooded figure. "Could be one of Nabaat's lackeys. It's impossible to get an ID from this image," Vanille closed the footage, pulling up a dossier, "Nabaat's high ranking, so she's not short on contacts. If we can find out who she associates with these days, it might give us a lead."

Before Vanille could even finish speaking, Fang straightened up, placing her hands on her hips. "Just get me a name."

"It's not that simple," Vanille replied, "I crossed referenced information with the bat computer and came up short. I'm afraid that means we're going to have to get our information from another source."

Fang knew what this meant, and she didn't like it one bit. "I'm not talking to that bat freak," Fang spat, pacing the room, "What makes you think he knows anything anyways?"

"He's had dealings with Nabaat. He has to know something," Vanille replied, "but it's okay, you don't have to talk to him. He's not in Gotham City anyway. He has business in Metropolis."

Vanille watched her apprentice noticeably relaxed at her words. Under normal circumstances she might have said more but now wasn't the time to discuss Fang's dysfunctional relationship with the Dark Knight of Gotham.

"So, what now?" Fang asked.

"You have a date with a certain boy wonder."

Fang rolled her eyes. It was the lesser of two evils.

* * *

Heavy rain bounced off the streets, splashing with each heavy footstep of black leather boots. The sound of heavy breathing was barely audible above the busy downtown Gotham highway. Cars rushed past, honking their horns and swerving to avoid the hooded figure that dashed across the busy road.

Leaning against the wire fencing, Yaag Rosch lit yet another cigarette, inhaling as he watched the hooded figure approaching. He flicked the cigarette on the ground, stomping it out with the tip of his steel capped boots.

"About time you got here." He shouted over the deafening traffic. This wasn't the ideal place to meet, but least the deafening volume of the traffic would prevent any eavesdropping.

The figure didn't speak, only handed Rosch an envelope, watching as he opened it with a slight smirk. "I see…" Roash said, examining the contents of the envelope. "It will be done."

No more words were exchanged and with only a small nod, the hooded figure turned to leave. Rosch watched as they ran across the highway, paying no mind to the oncoming traffic. He looked down at the piece of paper in his hand. He wasn't one to turn down an offer of work and this one certainly seemed to be a rather interesting assignment. He carefully folded the piece of paper, placing it into the breast pocket of his long black leather jacket. He would bide his time and soon he would strike. Even the birds of prey themselves couldn't avoid the wrath of the world's greatest assassin.

* * *

"We met again, Huntress."

Fang rolled her eyes. She hated this kid almost as much as his Dark Knight partner but this meeting was definitely preferable to the alternative. She jumped down onto the lower roof of the Gotham City police headquarters. This may have seemed a strange meeting place for two crime fighters but Commissioner Amodor always did have a vested interest in the crime-fighting community, particularly since his daughter happened to be the forming member of the birds.

"Save the pleasantries, bird boy," Fang snarled, pacing the roofing, "What do you know?"

It wasn't that Fang hated the boy wonder, in a way she did hold some sympathy for the boy. Hope Estheim AKA Robin had a tragic past. After losing his mother at the tender age of ten, Hope had watched his father driven to madness by his obsession. The Obsession that had been responsible for his wife's death threatened to consume him. After a struggle with his own sanity, Bartholomew Estheim had taken a turn down a dark path, one that this young man refused to follow.

In a way, Fang admired him for his determination. Becoming a crime fighter in hopes of saving your own father from his darkness was an admirable goal. It was unfortunate that his association with the Dark Knight coloured her opinion of him.

"Fine, I'll make this quick," Hope replied, leaning on his long wooden staff. His red cape rustled in the wind. "The Oracle tells me you've lost a bird."

Fang narrowed her eyes at the boy, placing her hands on her hips. She waited impatiently from him to continue. She just needed that lead.

"You need to talk to the League of Assassins," Hope continued, holding his hand up when it looked like Fang was about to interrupt him, "Talk to a man by the name of Caius Ballad."

"Caius? I know that name," Fang had definitely heard that name before; Caius Ballad was a whole level higher in terms of super criminals. "Why are you sending me to that maniac?"

"Because nothing happens in the underworld without Caius knowing about it," Hope replied. He could tell that Fang was getting impatient with him, "Caius runs the league and I happen to know that some of his assassins have been hired to run errands for Nabaat."

Fang nodded. It was a small start but better than she had five minutes ago. "How do you know this?" If the Oracle was unable to cover this information, Fang had to wonder how Robin had so much more intel.

"We have a mole working from inside the league," Hope paced the rooftop, spinning his staff between two fingers. "He's been passing information to us for months now."

A mole, it made perfect sense and Fang had to admire the balls of any man willing to infiltrate the League of Assassins. The League was one of the biggest underground organizations in Gotham City. A large handful of highly trained assassins all working under their mysterious benefactor, Caius Ballad. There were many mysteries surrounding this man and the biggest mystery of all was his endless lifespan. Caius Ballad never aged and despite the best efforts of almost every superhero in Gotham City, the mysterious man seemed to be almost indestructible.

"So, any idea how I'm going to get inside? I'm guessing that knocking on the front door is out of the question."

"Indeed," Hope replied, smiling slightly at the image of a superhero simply knocking on the front door of one of the biggest criminal organizations in the world. "Ballad isn't the friendly type but he loves to negotiate. Perhaps if you can offer him something that interests him, he might be willing to talk. A bargaining chip perhaps."

A bargaining chip? Fang thought for a moment. What could she possibly offer a man like Caius? Then it occurred to her. From the little information and stories she'd heard about Ballad, they definitely had one thing in common and that one thing would make excellent bargaining chip. Question was how she could use it to her advantage. A plan was formulating inside the mind of the half feline superhuman but she decided not to share it with the boy wonder.

"Thanks for the info, kid." Before Hope had a chance to even reply, Fang was gone, jumping across the rooftops and into the distance.

Hope looked up into the sky, closing his eyes and sighing heavily as the wind blew under his cape. Passing on information was all well and good and he was happy to help given the bird's dire situation, but actions spoke louder than words and he was not about to sit complacent. A fellow superhero was in trouble and sidekick or not Hope was compelled to help. He wouldn't follow Fang into the League of Assassins but there had to be another way he could lend assistance.

He looked down at the streets below. The seedy undercurrent of Gotham City was hidden below the cover of a gentle rising sun set.

"I wish you luck, Huntress." Hope whispered into the breeze, jumping down from the rooftop to find his way to the darkness below.


End file.
